Women 40 – Blackrock 5

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Match Result

Result: Galwegians Women 40 - Blackrock 5

Venue: Blackrock on Sat Jan 12th 2013

Competition: Paul Flood Leinster Womens Cup

Match Report

Galwegians opened its Paul Flood Trophy (Leinster Cup) account in convincing fashion with a 40-5 trouncing of former AIL heavyweight Blackrock in Dublin on Sunday.
Blackrock looked a shadow of its former self in all but three five minute periods on Sunday but had improved markedly from the 26-nil loss they suffered in the AIL played earlier this season.

And while the improvement was obvious, and Galwegians worked harder this time round for its scores, once the frontline was breached tries followed within seconds.

Foremost among the scorers was Dr. Carol Staunton who ran rampant through opposition tacklers throughout both halves in as clinical and academic a fashion on show. Her first came within three minutes of kickoff and the second followed halfway through the first period.

Margaret Fitzgibbon at 13 grabbed one two minutes later, outhalf Clare Raftery added extras on two of them.

Galwegians opened the second half 19points to nothing up. Anne O'Callghan entered the fray on one wing, Niamh Ni Dhroma moved to the midfield with Lisa McDonagh as Fitzgibbon took the rest of the afternoon off.

Blackrocks cause worsened still with the loss of a frontrower, yellow-carded on the two minute mark and Ruth O Reilly for the bluebelles dotted down three minutes later.

Raftery brought it up to 26-nil with the kick and despite a fantastic defensive display, exemplified by Galwegians Player-of-the-Game flanker Heather Cary, Blackrock responded on the 50minute mark with a try of their own.

Suitably jolted into activity, Lisa McDonagh (13 at this stage) capitalised on tiring defence and skipped through herself five minutes later, Raftery proving spot on once again.

Wing-threequarters Naomi Mitchell and Deirdre O Connor landed on the pitch with a quarter hour to go, both Mary Healy and Mairead Coyne clocking up creditable performances throughout. Coyne's ability to handle sloppy ball from fullback meant the county footballer looked every bit a rugby player in her second outing.

A Galwegian indiscretion (Kate O Flynn, 6) dropped them to 14 players 10 minutes from the end but it did not stop Staunton roaring away for her third on fulltime.